Curated OER
National Park Service: Hernando De Soto
A biography of Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto who explored the southern coast of what became the United States. Read about his travels and demise.
Walled Lake Consolidated Schools
Loon Lake Elementary School: Juan Ponce De Leon
A biography of Spanish conquistador, Juan Ponce de Leon, who sailed with Columbus, and landed on Florida. Find pictures and maps of his exploration.
Other
The Conquest of North America by Hernando De Soto, Coronado and Cabeza De Vaca
Describes the conquest of North America in the 1500s by the explorers Hernando de Soto, Vasquez de Coronado, and Cabeza de Vaca. The text has many embedded links to maps showing the routes they traveled as well as to additional information.
Enchanted Learning
Enchanted Learning: Vasco Nunez De Balboa
Learn about the life and times of Spanish conquistador and explorer Vasco Nunez de Balboa.
PBS
Pbs the West: Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca
A biography of this Spanish explorer who was born in 1490. Click on "route" for a map of his travels, and click on "account" for a translation of his published account of his experiences.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: American Passages: Cabeza De Vaca
Explorer Cabeza de Vaca is considered the first true Chicano writer, having been born in Spain and then absorbed into the Native American culture, highlighting this new culture in his writings. Click on "Cabeza de Vaca Activities" for...
Mariners' Museum and Park
Mariners' Museum: Francisco Pizarro
A not-so-nice, yet successful Spanish explorer, Francisco Pizarro is featured in a biography for conquering Peru and working his way up the Pacific coast to discover land in Central America. Check out his route and details of his...
A&E Television
Biography: Juan Ponce De Leon
A biography of Juan Ponce de Leon, a Spanish explorer from the 15th and 16th centuries. He was at one point the governor of Puerto Rico, and is credited with discovering Florida. Ponce de Leon is also remembered for having searched the...
A&E Television
Biography: Ferdinand Magellan
A biography on the life and voyages of 16th century Portuguese explorer, Ferdinand Magellan, who was the first to circumnavigate the globe, although he did not survive the journey. Magellan was Portuguese but he commanded a Spanish fleet.
Internet History Sourcebooks Project
Fordham University: Modern History Sourcebook: Ferdinand Magellan's Voyage Round the World
A recount by a member of the crew of the voyage of Ferdinand Magellan to the Philippines in the 16th century, where he was killed, and of the remaining voyage his crew took in the eastern oceans, then back to Spain.
PBS
Pbs the West: Cities of Gold
This PBS site recounts the efforts of Spanish explorers to find the fabled gold of the New World.
Enchanted Learning
Enchanted Learning: Ferdinand Magellan: World Explorer
A short biography of Ferdinand Magellan.
Enchanted Learning
Enchanted Learning: Francisco Pizarro: Explorer
A short biography of Francisco Pizarro.
Siteseen
Siteseen: Land of the Brave: Juan Ponce De Leon Facts
Covers the life of Ponce de Leon, a Spanish explorer known for leading the first official European expedition to Florida in 1513.
Curated OER
Ecuador Explorer: A Brief History of Ecuador
This site tells the story of the Conquistadors search for gold in Ecuador. It is written like a story rather than a biography and is very detailed and interesting.
Other
Eldritch Press: Cabeza De Vaca's Adventures in the Unknown Interior of America
Read this fascinating account by Alvar Nunez Cabeza de Vaca, one of four survivors who traversed Florida and the Southwest for eight years, from 1529-1537.Read the preface which gives a background to this narrative before delving into...
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca
Gain insight into the life and adventures of Spanish explorer, Cabeza de Vaca, whose expeditions led him to Texas and Mexico.
University of South Florida
Floripedia: A Florida Encyclopedia: De Narvaez, Panfilo
Information about the Spanish conquistador, Panfilo de Narvaez, taken from a 1904 book, A History of Florida. The page includes some recall questions interspersed with the original text.
Soylent Communications
Notable Names Database|nndb: Vasco Nunez De Balboa
A brief biography of one of the successful Spanish conquistadors, Vasco Nunez de Balboa. He is recognized for his discovery of the Pacific Ocean and land in the Americas.
Other
Brown Quarterly: Hernando De Soto Expedition
An overview of the career of Spanish conquistador Hernando De Soto including a brief analysis of the effects his explorations in the southern portions of North America had on the natives of that region.
A&E Television
History.com: Ferdinand Magellan
A biography of Ferdinand Magellan, a 16th century Portuguese explorer who travelled with a Spanish fleet, and an account of his voyage around the world, from which he did not return.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Hernando Cortes 1485 1547
Furnished is a brief summary of the life and explorations of Spanish explorer, Hernando Cortes. Take a look at the photos and maps of his journey of what today is called Mexico.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica: Bartolomeu Dias
Bartolomeu Dias, Dias also spelled Diaz (born c. 1450-died May 29, 1500, at sea, near Cape of Good Hope), Portuguese navigator and explorer who led the first European expedition to round the Cape of Good Hope (1488), opening the sea...